The Latin Scot

I definitely pull out whatever I have when I teach the Scouting Heritage merit badge. My stuff generally isn't that old, but the boys are pretty motivated when they see that a youngher guy like my can still be interested in all the old stuff, and they get excited when I find little odds and ends to add to my collection. Maybe someday I will acquire enough to have a really legitimate collection! Aside from my collection of Handbooks (I have one each of every single edition now), most of my stuff is pretty recent.

Aw ... I am 34 years old and I still wear a small. Now I feel ridiculous. My Dad wears a garrison hat though; he's a Wolf Den Leader and the boys love it. Between his garrison and my campaign hat, we're pretty well covered in my home! Now we just need to find my mom a good lady's hat that doesn't make her "look like an airline stewardess."

Perfect; thank you so much! This is just the thing I have been looking for.

Wear can I obtain this? I searched the Scout supply site to no avail; do you have a link? I LOVE the idea!

This is absolutely correct; in fact, for many decades Scouts were supposed to wear the neckerchief over the collar with the collar tucked under. Allowing them to tuck the necker under is the more recent option, but as @HelpfulTracks has pointed out, both are entirely permitted.

I LOVE neckerchiefs! They add such a classic feel to the uniform, not to mention their little splash of color does a lot to brighten up the earth tones of the rest of its items. I admit I am starting to amass quite a little collection of neckers, all for different occassion - I have my Cub Scout Leader blue, and my Webelos plaid, not to mention the white NESA necker I just got a from a boy's parents to wear at his coming Eagle Court of Honor. I can easily see myself ending up with a whole plethora of colors to choose from; I love colors, and the neckerchief is the one part of the uniform where

@karunamom3 I would love to hear how this event turned out if you have a moment to share!

Wow ... that house is bigger and nicer than the house I grew up in! Those boys had better appreciate it, lol.

Well fortunately the boy's mother dropped by and actually asked if the blue Eagle necker was something that I was comfortable wearing or if she should have gotten something else. We had a rather delightful conversation mostly centered on the over-eagerness of her son, and we opted to switch out the blue on for the white NESA necker instead. This way the boy still feels like he is sharing the moment with me (which is far too kind of him already), while I can still be distinguished as a leader and not as one of the Eagle recipients. The boy's mom joked that I should just go with it and pretend I

I just took the new YPT out of curiousity, not because mine was going to expire, but I must say - I appreciate the tone of the new modules, even if they are a bit heavy handed. As a Child Development Professional, I am grateful they are committing themselves to keeping their information updated and the leadership informed. It's longer than the old one, but I am of the mind that when it comes to the safety of young people, any measure of my time is worth the effort.

I am sure there are many more cases than these floating around somewhere. I have a friend who is a third generation Eagle Scout, and he has kids of his own who will likely earn their Eagles within the next few years, so that's easily 4 generations. As for my family, we are slowly growing our own crop, lol. My father is a Life Scout, but all three of his sons earned their Eagles, and now I have a brother with four sons and another with two - that'll be nine Eagles within two generations (and if I can convince some nice girl to marry my someday, maybe I will have little Eagles of my own ev

Okay, this isn't as much a policy question (as there isn't one on this issue) as much as a protocol question. Another boy in my neighborhood is holding his Eagle Court of Honor next Saturday. All is well and good, and then he comes to my home this morning to present me with ... an Eagle Scout neckerchief to wear. You know, the bright blue embroidered one they sell at the Scout Store, very bright and very pretty. Now, his reasoning was that he noticed I didn't wear one at the last Eagle CofH, and so he wanted me to have one to wear at his next week (he's doing an "Eagle's Nest, gol' darn i

My mom is actually trying to find one of the old blue Cub barets; she's the Wolf Den Leader in my Pack and it's the only hat she actually likes (she won't wear the ball caps and thinks the lady's Garrison hat makes her look like a stewardess). But they never show up on eBay or Etsy ... Anybody know where to find one? She insists it be official, no knock-offs, which makes it tricky. She actually doesn't know I am on the look out for one; I am hoping to surprise her for Mother's Day.

As an LDS Webelos Leader myself, I confess I have indeed seen a few leaders who seem to shrug Boy Scout training off on to the shoulders of the 11 year-old leaders, but I don't subscribe to that kind of lazy mentality. I firmly believe that it is my duty as a Webelos Leader to ensure that every last one of my boys enters the Boy Scout Troop fully prepared with the knowledge and skills they need to start off successfully. As I have mentioned in other threads, my success is measured by each boy's ability to earn the Scout rank within 1 - 3 weeks of crossing over. If it takes him longer tha

As Tolkien wisely wrote, "he that breaks a thing to find out what it is has left the path of wisdom." The reason the advancement program is so vital to what Scouting is comes from the fact that, at it's core, it teaches boys how to make, and accomplish, worthwhile goals, in a manner which boys can understand. They learn planning, work, and preparation. When they fail or don't quite meet the requirements, they look back and learn from their initial attempt and keep trying till they succeed. It gives focus to their inborn energies and desires to achieve by giving healthy, stimulating and

Just out of curiosity, what are the two special awards? Judging by your mayor, it sounds like your pack is full of achievers. I hope your B&G goes wonderfully tomorrow!

Are you KIDDING ME?!? Any pack in this country would give their right arm (right den?) to have a community leader as generous and loyal to Scouting as that man! I dare say the fact that he is a former pack member himself makes the whole thing sound too good to possibly be true; what a FABULOUS friend and opportunity you have - wow I am already envious (forgive me!). There is no rule whatsoever that states only pack leaders can hand out awards - in fact this kind of community involvement should be the ideal of every Scouting unit. As it turns out, hosting community and civic leaders

The thing is, statistically and technically, you are incorrect. If you check the national averages, the majority of boys who are in Cub Scouts do in fact continue on to Boy Scouts. No it isn't 100%, but it is more than half, so ... that is the definition of MOST. A majority. The larger portion. The bigger slice of the pie. Trying to push the idea that "most kids who like cub scouts end up not liking boy scouts" is an unfortunate commentary on your experiences for which I am indeed sorry, but it does your position no good to try and force an idea that objectively isn't so. I understand bot

LOL that's nice of you to say, though one would need to be a bit more attractive than I am to get that kind of attention. Not with that kind of an attitude, no. But if you cultivate a close partnership with a local troop and simply assume from the start that Webelos in your den will move on to Boy Scouts when they are old enough, you can ensure that the majority of them do. I don't even talk to my parents about the possibility of the boys not moving on; I simply gear all conversations towards the eventual advancement to Boy Scouts, and treat it as being as expected and natural as the t

A half-hour north of me, there is one of the oldest Troop cabins in the country. Huntington Beach Troop 1 has been meeting in the same place for a century, and it's a treasure trove of Scouting artifacts. Here is a link to their website's images: https://sites.google.com/site/troop1hb/about-us/inside-the-cabin

Everybody knows that the official socks are the plushiest, most delightful socks in the world, and that it's the ONE part of the uniform that's worth every penny of the cost. And this from a Californian who prefers to wear sandals whenever humanly possible!

Our pack has simplified the PWD as much as humanly possible, and it has turned out GREAT for us. Here are some of the changes we made that have made things easier AND much more fun: 1. We don't have a 1st, 2nd or 3rd - instead, every boy received a participation medal, but then there are extra medals that encourage effort and success of all kinds. Our categories are Fastest Car, Slowest Car (what we call the "Marathon Winner"), Most Creative Car, Scout's Choice Award (the boys all vote on this one), and two other awards that change from year to year. This way, some cars are given prizes b

@Urbanredneck welcome to the boards! Mind sharing what your idea might be? :-)

These are interesting demographics! I know that here in Orange County CA, Den Leaders are overwhelmingly female. I do new Den Leader trainings for the council all over the County, and generally there are 25-40 new den leaders at each event, held every quarter or so. And I am usually one of the only men in the room. Looking at my roster from a training I did in October (conveniently at hand right at the moment!), there are 27 names listed, and 23 of them are women. Male Den Leaders here are simply uncommon, though they are certainly sought after. And I being a young single male with no kids of

I think the question parents need to consider is - why are their boys in Scouts at all? If they are in it to build character, become good husbands and fathers, and take active, positive roles in their communities, then advancement will reflect that and the effort, time and personal expenses will all be worth it. But if we don't have a clear vision of the end goals, what good is all the work we put into it? Considering these things, I don't believe the tired old adage about "the journey mattering more than the destination." Quite the opposite. Sure, you should get the most out of the journ